He didn't play well at all in the 2004 Finals or 2008 Finals. Let's not pretend otherwise, Kobe fans.

Then to be even more honest, he struggled quite a bit for half an entire series in both the 2001 Finals, and the 2010 Finals.

The 2000 Finals he was banged up, but had a memorable moment when he closed out a Shaq-less game v.s. the Pacers in OT. But wasn't a memorable Finals in total by any stretch.

He played well in the 2002 Finals, and played good in the 2009 Finals.

So he had two good Finals out of SEVEN Finals appearances, and the two he played well in weren't legendary or near as epic or iconic for a player of his caliber, IMO.

It to me in retrospect slightly dampened his worth as a player.

2/7 Finals for good performances (2002, 2009)

3/7 Finals for meh or decent performances (2000, 2001, 2010)

2/7 Finals for bad performances (2004, 2008)

Notice, no "GREAT" or "LEGENDARY" stamps on any of his Finals appearances.

No 81 point game explosions, not even a 50 point game. For supposedly the best scorer of all-time? Odd. His Finals performance overall have been greatly disappointing. Even the most hardcore Kobe fan has to agree they expected him to deliver more on that stage.

As for LeBron? Don't think I forgot about you LeBron Youngins, let's break down his grand stage performances under the bright lights.